Two-way comedy at parliament’s oath-taking ceremony
Once again, Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) deputy Leyla Zana has not taken the MP’s oath “correctly.” We know why she does this.
The following sentence is included in the oath that deputies must take at the opening of parliament: “I swear upon my honor and integrity, before the great Turkish Nation.” By not saying this sentence, Zana must have wanted to again point out that there are in fact nations other than Turks living in Turkey.
Still, this is not the right way to convey her thoughts. The oath-taking procedure is written in the constitution and it is unacceptable for anybody to change that written text however they want. Zana knows that as long as she does not read the oath as it is written in the constitution she cannot start her duties as a deputy. Before she ran for office, she knew that she would have to take the oath if she was elected. If she knew that she would not read the oath, why did she run for office?
Zana should take the oath, start her duties, and then work in parliament to try to change the part that she does not find suitable in the text of this oath. Politics is about solving problems; all the deputies should keep that in mind. Still, I would also like to remind you that the uproar over Zana’s move is also deeply hypocritical. I am particularly referring to the protests coming from the benches of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP).
From the day he was elected, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has been openly violating the constitution. He swore upon his honor and integrity to be impartial, but he is violating this.
He is interfering in the duties of the prime minister, trying to use his powers. He was constitutionally required to formally cut all ties with his party on the day he was elected, but not only did he not do that until his own oath-taking, he even attended his party’s congress and delivered a speech. Pardon me, but when those who have not raised their voices against any of this criticize Zana for not reading the oath text as it is written in the constitution, it is only funny.
Who will form the government, Davutoğlu or the palace?
President Erdoğan has given the mandate to form a new government to Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu.
You will remember that after the June 7 election he waited for the Parliament Presidential Council to be formed before he gave this mandate. In fact, even though there is no written rule on this it is customary that the president assigns the leader of the winning party the mandate to form a government after the oath-taking of deputies at parliament. However, at that time, the formation of a coalition was being discussed and the president, in order to prevent that from happening, deliberately delayed handing over the mandate and thus shortened the deadline with a view to snap elections. The rest was done by Davutoğlu. He stalled talks with the Republican People’s Party (CHP) for 35 days and he did not even offer a coalition to the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP). All that is history. What prompts curiosity now is exactly whose government the new government will be. Will the government be dominated by the palace, or will Prime Minister Davutoğlu, as the leader who won the election, protect what the nation has entrusted him with and form his own government?
We do not need to wait much longer to find out. If the president’s son-in-law Berat Albayrak seizes a ministerial position related to the economy, and if Ali Babacan is kept away from the economy, then we will know that the government is the “palace’s government.”
Let’s see which position Davutoğlu will grant to Babacan. Will it be a symbolic position, or will he make Babacan the captain of the economy again?
